I have to admit I was pretty apprehensive about starting this race when I saw the names on the start list. Several cyclocross professionals, a professional triathlete, an Olympic track cyclist, and 2 professional teams from Canada made the trip to Schylerville. I knew it was going to be a difficult day and that it would be hard right from the start. As soon as we came out of the rolling neutral start there was a flurry of attacks. We went from 20mph to 35mph in about 30 seconds. It seemed like everyone wanted to be in the early break and there was attack after attack. About 30 minutes later on route 40 the early break was established and the main group calmed down to a fast but steady pace. Meeting House Road would be the first of several selections with a large split occurring in the main group on the 3rd rise. I was able to find myself on the correct side of the split and continued to bide my time and stay out of the wind. The field was further thinned out on Stage, again on Perry Hill, again on Juniper Swamp. I managed to stay in the front group of about 12-15 primarily powered by Jeremy Powers and Bobby Lea as we chased down the breakaway of 4 which held a steady 2-3 minute gap throughout. Our group came through the feedzone together (thanks Anna!) and both Powers and Lea went to the front as we began the Joe Bean Road climb. They both started to turn the screws and one by one riders came off, me being one of them. I managed to hold a wheel until about halfway but I could just not match the continuous power output. Knowing the remainder of the course thanks to a great recon session with Zack I kept my pace high for the final 18 or so miles solo hoping to find remnants of my group along the way. I passed a few riders that cracked further up Joe Bean and on Riddle to finish in 15th spot. It was a great day of racing and I was super happy to be able to hang with such a strong field.